Ocean, nature, critters, and recreation

Adventure

Apr 12, 2013

A family on a boat tour of the Florida Everglades got an unexpected show Tuesday when their guide jumped into the water and began grappling with a 10-foot Burmese python.

Tommy Owen, a guide for Everglades Adventure Tours, was out with a boat of tourists when he saw the huge snake swimming through the water. His instincts took over, and Owen leapt into the water after it.

"They don't belong here and that was literally running through my mind," Owen told NBC affiliate WBBH-TV. "I launched on it, essentially ambushed it just like any other predator out
here."

One thing Owen didn't perceive, however, was the size of his opponent.

"I didn't even realize it was 10 feet -- I thought it was definitely over 6
feet, definitely bigger than me. I didn't realize it was three times the
size of my own arms."

Surprisingly, the group on the boat kept their cameras rolling, and caught the scuffle on video.

"After awhile it was just snake jujitsu -- we were just trying to battle it out -- he'd have one arm, I'd have the other," Owen said.

And he wasn't giving up the fight.

"I had to make sure I caught that one cause that's one less out there -- one less eating native species."

Burmese pythons are a non-native invasive species in Florida and have become a threat to native wildlife.

And those on the boat who were witness to the tussle? Owen believes they got a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"They'll never get a show like that ever again. That was the highlight of their life, or of their vacation for sure."

Feb 18, 2013

The inaugural "Python Challenge" is now one for the record books, with hunters bringing in a total of 68 Burmese pythons during the month-long competition held to help rid Florida of the invasive species.

Prizes were awarded Saturday during a ceremony at Zoo Miami to hunters who harvested the most pythons and to those who bagged the longest snake in two categories -- one for the general public and one for established snake-hunting permit holders.

The $1,500 grand prize for harvesting the most Burmese pythons went to Brian Barrows, from Fort Myers, Fla., who harvested six pythons in the general category, and Ruben Ramirez, of Miami, who harvested 18 pythons in the permit holders competition.

"Thanks to the determination of Python Challenge competitors, we are able to gather invaluable information that will help refine and focus combined efforts to control pythons in the Everglades," FWC Executive Director Nick Wiley said.

Burmese pythons, which are native to India, China, and the Malay
Peninsula, have been found in the wild in Florida since the 1980s. Snake owners who released pythons when they became too large to
manage are believed largely responsible for this troubling phenomenon.
The snakes, which are reproducing in the wild, have become a threat to
native wildlife.

In Florida, Burmese pythons prey on small mammals, birds, and even small alligators. Because they grow to such a large size, adult snakes have few predators other than larger alligators and humans.

Nov 06, 2012

This website recently featured a sampling of Daniel Botelho's stunning great white shark images, captured during an out-of-cage diving expedition to remote Guadalupe Island, west of Baja California. More recently, Botelho has released video footage from his experience, and it provides viewers with an even better idea of what it's like to swim with these amazing predators.

Botelho's objective, in part, was to dispel the myth that great whites are man-eaters that will attack anyone who enters their realm.

That certainly was not the case for Botelho, who logged an incredible 24 hours in the water without cage protection, during his nearly two-week stay aboard a live-aboard charter vessel. Or for the others who can be seen in the video, photographing adult white sharks.

This practice, however, is controversial. And this type of experience, understandably, is not for everyone.

Said Botelho, who served as a safety diver on this excursion: "The sharks are like dogs; you need to keep them calm. As [with] dogs, they can get excited with wrong moves and unstable attitudes, so the trick is to keep the right attitude, transmitting tranquility and peace to the animal, so it can come really close but not try to touch the diver."

Botelho's images have been shared thousands of times on his Facebook page.

Oct 23, 2012

When one of Daniel Botelho's images last appeared on this website it was a spectacular depiction of a giant mola mola, captured while searching for blue whales off San Diego.

(Editor's note: This is a reprint of a Pete Thomas post on the GrindTv Outdoor blog. All images are protected by copyright laws.)

More recently the photographer traveled to a remote island off Mexico to photograph great white sharks without cage protection, and returned with a series of captivating images he hopes will help dispel perceptions of white sharks as blood-thirsty killers.

Botelho was on an assignment for Disney but also served as safety diver during an odyssey to Guadalupe Island, during which passengers--only one at a time--were allowed to venture out of submerged cages and swim freely with full-grown white sharks.

"White sharks are like the Lion King," the photographer states on his Facebook page. "Predators, yes, but not psychopathic man killers."

Asked to provide more details, Botelho messaged back to say that he has been diving with white sharks since 2006, but this was his first time in the gin-clear waters of Guadalupe Island, which is located 165 miles west of Baja California.

Of his role as safety diver he said: "The safety diver is the guy that takes care of everybody in the water, a bodyguard of the guests, and that doesn't mean to be brave; not at all, it is much more about keeping a relaxed and peaceful interaction with the animals."

Three divers were outside of the cage at a time. Botelho, the expedition leader, and one guest. Botelho said he logged nearly 24 hours outside the cage during a two-week trip. He experienced no close calls with predators that can weigh up to 5,000 pounds and bite an elephant seal in half.

"The sharks are like dogs; you need to keep them calm," he said. "As dogs, they can get excited with wrong moves and unstable attitudes, so the trick is to keep the right attitude, transmitting tranquility and peace to the animal, so it can come really close but not try to touch the diver.

"This is the definitive proof that great white sharks are not man-eaters; people can live and interact with great white sharks, as long as they have the understanding of how the animal reacts and how to build a positive interaction with this magnificent creature!"

White sharks are specialized feeders and do not regard humans as prey, and most attacks on humans occur at the surface and are believed to have been cases of mistaken identity.

Still, they're wild and extremely powerful creatures, which is reason for pause when considering an out-of-cage experience.

Botelho said the divers sometimes had as many as six great whites around them at a time, all making close approaches, as if curious about the intruders.

"It was one of the best dives of my life and the experience as safety diver out of the cage was incredible," Botelho said. "It is much more than just taking photos; I learned so much more about how to 'read' and interact with those apex predators."

He labeled the 24 hours he logged outside of the cage during the final seven days of this odyssey as his own personal "Shark Week" and from now on for the photographer, the TV version will never quite compare.

Jul 25, 2012

Felix Baumgartner successfully completed a test jump from more than 18 miles above the earth Wednesday in his quest to break the record for the highest altitude freefall.

The test jump from 96,640 feet over Roswell, N.M. involved a 3-minute, 48-second freefall during which Baumgartner reached speeds of 536 mph.

It was the second and final test jump for the Red Bull Stratos mission, during which the 43-year-old Austrian hopes to successfully jump from 120,000 feet -- a distance of nearly 23 miles -- and break the current record of 102,800 feet set in 1960 by U.S. Air Force Col. (Ret.) Joe Kittinger, who is now Baumgartner's mentor.

Baumgartner also hopes to become the first person to break the speed of sound in freefall.

Wednesday's test jump, tentatively scheduled for Monday, was twice delayed due to thunderstorms, wind and rain.

"It was a rough couple of days and an exhausting endeavor. I am now really excited," Baumgartner said in a news release issued after the successful landing. "It has always been a dream of mine. Only one more step to go."

The date for the final jump is now subject to favorable weather conditions but may likely take place within the next month.

Jul 11, 2012

Two Australian freedivers had hoped to spear some fish for dinner during a recent expedition near Drummond Cove, but a 12-foot great white shark changed their plans. Nathan Podmore and Dave Richards sensed danger soon after diving in, then the shark materialized and began to circle the pair.

"She was probably there 25 seconds before we even knew she was there — the video shows it," Prodmore told the West Australian.

Richards had a camera strapped to his head and filmed the frightening encounter.

Richards explained the beginning of the encounter to the newspaper:

"Nathan was on the top of the water getting ready to go down and I felt something moving behind me. I turned around and all I saw was the back section of the shark. Mate, it was a meter away. My heart sank and I just tried to get Nathan’s attention."

Said Prodmore: "As soon as Dave screamed my name out and I was face-to-face I knew it was a great white."

But the divers managed to remain calm, perhaps aware that panic might invite disaster. Instead of swimming toward their boat, which was 150 feet away, or shooting the shark, they stood their ground and merely poked at the shark when it swam too closely.

Ultimately, the shark swam off and the divers made a careful dash for the boat.

Prodmore recalled: “When we got to the boat I didn’t take my head out of the water until I knew I had a three or four seconds to get on to the boat."

May 21, 2012

Mt. Everest's"Death Zone" lived up to its name over the weekend as at least four climbers succumbed to the elements near the 29,035-foot summit of the world's tallest peak.

Overcrowding on the main summit route, leading to prolonged exposure and exhaustion within a low-oxygen zone that begins at 8,000 meters (about 26,000 feet), is being blamed.

The victims were identified as Eberhard Schaaf, 61, a German doctor; Shriya Shah, 33, of Canada; Song Won-bin, 44, of South Korea, and Ha Wenyi, 55, of China.

Still missing is the Chinese climber's Sherpa guide.

A mass summit attempt began Friday and Saturday as climbing teams were taking advantage of the first favorable weather window of of the season. About 150 climbers reached the top of Everest, mostly on Saturday.

But crowding had choked ascent routes, delaying summit bids of some teams by several hours.

"There was a traffic jam on the mountain on Saturday. Climbers were still heading to the summit as late as 2:30 p.m. which is quite dangerous," Gyanendra Shrestha, of Nepal's Mountaineering Department, told the Associated Press.

"With the traffic jam, climbers had a longer wait for their chance to go up the trail and spent too much time at higher altitude. Many of them are believed to be carrying limited amount of oxygen and not anticipating the extra time spent."

The Seoul-based Yonhap news agency is reporting that Song, after collapsing with fatigue, fell at an area known as The Balcony, a small platform area at 27,600 feet.

On average, a handful of climbers perish each year on Mt. Everest. This year, according to Everestnews.com, there have been at least six fatalities, and 198 successful summits.

The most tragic day on Everest, with late summit bids also a contributing factor, was May 10, 1996, when eight people died after becoming trapped in a snow storm.

Apr 17, 2012

I tried dog-sledding for the first time last week and discovered that a) the animals are surprisingly fast, b) concentration and a good sense of balance are required to stay aboard the sled, and c) I probably will not be getting an invite to participate in the Iditarod anytime soon.

Fortunately, I was wearing a GoPro camera and managed to capture the splendor of the Alaskan wilderness from atop a tenuous vehicle being towed behind a real dog sled piloted by veteran musher Kathryn Lenniger.

Unfortunately, I also managed to capture the painful few moments during which I was pitched from my sled, which began to tip as our dogs were passing another team that was stopped on the trail.

There was a slight tilt in the landscape and the rails seemed to be sliding into the dogs we were passing, so I tried guiding my sled away by leaning and that's when things went haywire. I landed on a dead run, felt my hamstring pull, and tumbled.

Remarkably, though, I did not produce a single profane word as I was ordered to "hurry" back to the sled, trying to conceal my injury and maintain a small measure of dignity.

After the hourlong adventure outside of Fairbanks I was relieved to learn that several others in our group of bloggers -- on a trip arranged by the GoPro PR staff -- had also been pitched from their sleds.

Beforehand, none of us would have considered mushing to be a contact sport?

Apr 09, 2012

Another video has surfaced showing a large tiger shark almost biting a scuba diver participating in a group feeding expedition in the Bahamas.

Fast-forward to the 2-minute mark and watch the diver scurry upward, in haste, to avoid an apex predator intent on chomping the bait the diver was holding near his midsection.

Now click on the following link to a video posted in early March, and watch as a different scuba diver yanks his foot from the jaws of a large tiger shark that for a moment seemed to regard the appendage as food.

Upon review, can anyone say with confidence that these types of out-of-the-cage feeding operations are safe for humans and good for sharks? Is an attack imminent in what appears to have become the Wild West of shark diving?

Granted, both videos help to illustrate that sharks are wary, specialized predators, because sharks involved in both close calls did not actually bite anyone.

But large sharks -- like large terrestrial wild animals -- are not friendly toward humans. They're powerful and unpredictable, and luring them in with the promise of food in this manner, and hand-feeding them, is asking for trouble.

Agree or disagree?

It's worth noting that the accompanying video, uploaded by a YouTube user named Robert Frixenhoff, might have been posted to illicit reaction from within the shark-diving community. The footage is from last August and watermarked into the video, on the lower right corner at the 11-second mark, is "Jim Abernethy's Scuba-Adventures.com."

Abernethy, whose dive company is in Florida, is no stranger to controversy. In 2008 one of his clients, Markus Groh, died after being bitten by a shark while diving outside a cage off Florida. In January of 2011, Abernethy was bitten on the arm by a lemon shark at the Bahamas, and air-lifted to a Florida hospital.

If the Bahamas is the Wild West of shark diving, here's hoping the next dramatic video showdown, likewise, does not involve the spilling of blood.